Reimagining Picton Harbour

Draft Vision released for public input

The committee investigating opportunities for the future of Picton Harbour has approached its task with a measure of humility and optimism. The finger-like protrusion of Picton Bay into the core of the town was developed primarily as a place of work and of commerce. Goods and services flowed in and out of this harbour. This was its primary purpose for more than a century. Only in recent decades have priorities shifted. But transforming the harbour and surrounding area—much of it private property—is an immense challenge. Today, it is a thick, matted ball of legal, environmental and cultural issues. Matters that won’t be resolved in a generation.

Embarking on such a project requires a plan—an idea of what can be and how it might be achieved. That is the aim of the Picton Harbour Development Draft Vision, released last week for discussion. (It can be downloaded by clicking here).

Ringed by private interests, Picton Harbour as a public place is, for some, an undesirable outcome. For others who see the economic and social value in better exploiting this important geographic feature around which the town developed, the harbour is an asset that belongs to the broader community.

Bridging these perspectives is the thorny task of the committee that has produced the Picton Harbour Development Draft Vision. Though sweeping in ambition, the committee has chosen to be more modest in identifying goals—assigning each to short, medium and long-term time frames. Hovering over the entire plan is the ever-contentious, and as yet unresolved issue of money and who will pay?

In the short-term, the committee proposes a prominent entrance sign at the harbour—both a grand welcome and a declaration of the community’s pride. It proposes wayfinding signage guiding visitors arriving by boat to the features and amenities in Picton. For those on foot or other means, signage will point to ways to enjoy the harbour. The committee also hopes to stoke entrepreneurial spirit—encouraging food vendors, water sports rentals and other services to establish in the harbour. Perhaps a pop-up market, music or live entertainment.

On the medium-term horizon, the Draft Vision contemplates enhanced public parking, more physical connections between the town and the harbour, as well as a rework of Picton’s water plant exterior to give it a more pleasing appearance. Perched at the entrance to the harbour, the water plant’s state of decay speaks to the waterway’s utilitarian history rather than a welcoming beacon to visitors arriving by watercraft.

The Draft Vision imagines improved marina facilities, art installations and public WiFi access.

Over the longer term, the committee contemplates the expansion of residential and commercial spaces around the harbour—a mix of homes, businesses and public spaces each feeding off the natural beauty that, for some, has been hidden or overlooked.

The Draft Vision is also considering the future of the town’s water plant. It is due for a major upgrade, replacement or perhaps the development of an alternative supply of water altogether.

Whatever happens, the committee wants the Picton Harbour Development Vision to inform the decisionmaking for the water plant.

“Picton Harbour is an underutilized asset in our community,” said Treat Hull, chair of the Picton Harbour Development Sub-Committee and councillor for Picton, “We aim to engage the public, build partnerships and interest amongst our residents to really promote this gem at the heart of the County.”

The key themes identified by the committee include quality of place, accessibility, as well as enhanced amenities and activities. These are vastly different ideas than those considered by the men and women who earned their living in Picton Harbour a hundred years ago.

Living on, or near, the water tends to nurture patience. And encourage gradual course corrections rather than hard turns. The committee has wisely chosen to adopt this same approach.